Taliban Pressure on Women's Cosmetic Stores in Kandahar and Helmand

Photo: AWNAA.af website

In the two southern provinces of Afghanistan, Kandahar and Helmand, female cosmetic shop owners are facing increasing pressure and threats from the Taliban. Shopkeepers say that Taliban officials have asked them to hide beauty products from public view. Failure to comply with this order is met with summons, arrest, and punishment.

Mohibullah, one of the shopkeepers in the Dane Rangrezan market of Kandahar city, told Zan TV, "Every day, Taliban forces visit the shops. If beauty products are visible, the shop owner is summoned or dealt with."

Dane Rangrezan market, known as one of the main centers for selling women's products in Kandahar, has recently become the target of new restrictions imposed by the Taliban's Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice. The Taliban have also banned women from entering this market, although some women still visit it despite the risks to meet their daily needs.

These pressures are not limited to Kandahar. In Lashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand province, shopkeepers are facing similar conditions. The Taliban have asked vendors not only to hide women's products but also to change their appearance and behavior according to Taliban standards. This includes growing beards and participating in congregational prayers and religious sessions.

Ismatullah, one of the vendors, said, "Previously, these activities were managed by the officials of the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue, but now the commanders of the security districts themselves are responsible. We always go to the mosque for prayers, but even after the prayer, they keep us and supposedly advise us."

Shopkeepers emphasize that these pressures have made the work environment unsafe, frightening, and unstable, severely disrupting their economic activities. They speak of the lack of freedom in choosing their profession, selling products, and even their manner of dressing. They fear that with the expansion of these restrictions, the local economy and daily life in these provinces will become even more paralyzed.